Meet the Class of 2012

September 11, 2009Duke Law News

Duke Law welcomed 228 new students during orientation events in late August.

The class, selected from more than 6,300 applications, is academically gifted, with LSAT scores at the 25th and 75th percentiles of 167 and 171, respectively, and undergraduate GPAs at the 25th and 75th percentiles of 3.6 and 3.84, respectively. More than 50 incoming students began dual-degree programs with an early start in Duke’s summer session in June.

As he welcomed the Class of 2012 at orientation, Associate Dean Bill Hoye noted that the class is “quite diverse based on many different measures.” He went on to illustrate that diversity with a listing of impressive and wide-ranging achievements represented by the class:

“You are graduates of 112 undergraduate colleges and universities from around the country and the world. Your most recent homes were in five foreign countries and 42 states, plus the District of Columbia. The largest cohort in your class — 31 students — is from California. …

“A few of you are openly gay or lesbian. Some of you are raising children. Several of you have disabilities. Quite a few of you have triumphed over significant economic disadvantages to be here. Many of you identify as members of ethnic minority groups. …

“One of you received Dartmouth’s Chase Peace Prize for an essay titled ‘Ideology and Responses to American Occupation.’ Another won the Philo Sherman Bennett Prize at Princeton for the best senior thesis discussing principles of free government. …

“One of you holds an MS from the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. Another has earned a Master’s in Theological Studies degree from Harvard. One holds a PhD in physics, another has a PhD in biology with a molecular, cell, and developmental concentration. One of you earned a PhD in pharmacology and cancer biology. One of you has completed two years of medical school here at Duke and is starting law school today as part of our dual JD/MD program. …

“Three of you used Fulbright Fellowships to teach English in Argentina, Poland, and Russia. Several of you volunteered for Teach for America. One of you was on the faculty of a prep school in New England. …

“Several of you interned at the White House and on Capitol Hill. One of you worked as a legislative intern for U.S. Senator Charles Schumer; another as a casework intern for Senator Kennedy. One of you worked at the CIA, as an Open Source Officer, authoring dozens of intelligence products analyzing the legal systems of countries in a region. One of you served as a Child Protection Officer for the UN Peacekeeping Mission in Darfur. A few of your classmates completed tours of duty in the Peace Corps in such locations as Moldova, Benin, and Paraguay. Several of you have served in various branches of the United States military. …

“One of you won bronze, silver, and gold medals at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Arts. Another was a touring musician — your first album was released in the U.S. in 2006 and in Europe in 2007. Several of you are singers, especially in a capella groups. Another is a professional jazz musician, averaging 150-200 engagements per year. A few of you have worked extensively in the television industry, on programs such as The Daily Show, with Jon Stewart. …

“One of you worked as a patent agent at a firm in Kansas City. Another was an economist for the Bureau of Labor Statistics. One of you was assistant vice president for Chase Manhattan Automotive Finance Corp. Several have had successful careers in journalism — one was an editor of the Morning News in Florence, S.C., and the St. Petersburg Times in Florida. Another was a professional beekeeper — first training farmers in Paraguay on high-tech beekeeping methods during your Peace Corps assignment, and later overseeing bee operations at Michigan State University. …

“A few of you have toiled on the front-lines of the battles against breast cancer and HIV/AIDS. Many have volunteered in literacy and mentoring projects. You have been active in organizations set up to help survivors of child abuse and domestic violence. Several of you have worked to promote civil rights for ethnic minorities, women, and gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered individuals. One of you was project coordinator at Lawyers without Borders for the Neutral Trial Observation project in Namibia. …

“Several of you play rugby — one was president of the Yale Rugby Football Club. Another competed at the international level and was a finalist for the USA Rugby Association Player of the Year. Many of you are cyclists: one placed ninth in the 2007 Collegiate Cycling Championship. Another classmate completed a 2,000 mile hike of the Appalachian Trail from Georgia to Maine.

“You are truly a terrific class. We are proud of your accomplishments and look forward to your contribution here at Duke,” Hoye added.

Hoye also encouraged students to hold tightly to their goals and values as they enter their law school journey, and reminded them that “countless individuals and organizations will benefit from your guidance and leadership; your communities will thrive because of your active service and engagement; and the world will become a more hopeful place because you have lived in it with purpose.”